Department for Transport

Heathrow Airport

Sarah Olney: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps have been taken in relation to Heathrow’s planned alternation policy since the 2019 consultation.

Paul Maynard: Following a vote in Parliament, the Airports National Policy Statement was designated as government policy in June 2018. It sets out a number of requirements that an applicant for development consent must meet – these include an expectation of a ban of six and a half hours on scheduled night flights and predictable respite from aircraft noise. Expansion is a private sector project. It is for an applicant to submit an application for development consent. Heathrow Airport Limited consulted on its proposed application between 18 June – 13 September 2019, and it has also said that it will consult again in April of this year.

Gatwick Express Railway Line: Fares

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will make it a condition of the Govia Thameslink Railway franchise that it reduce the price of its off-peak Gatwick Express tickets between Brighton and London to the cost of a Southern ticket during the upgrade work to Gatwick airport railway station when Southern off-peak services from London Victoria will not run direct to or from Brighton; and if he will make a statement.

Chris Heaton-Harris: GTR will be extending the Super Off-Peak and Kids for £2 Southern fare products to be eligible on Gatwick Express services from Brighton for the duration of the Gatwick Station works.

Rail Review

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether the Williams Review will include consideration of ways in which manufacturing can support the UK economy.

Chris Heaton-Harris: The Williams Rail Review was tasked with bringing forward recommendations for root and branch change in the rail industry. Keith Williams, its independent chair, and his team have been looking closely across the sector to ensure it works in the best interests of passengers and taxpayers. He has also been considering the railway’s wider social and economic benefits. A White Paper based on his recommendations will be published soon.

Shipping: Crew

Cat Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 30 January 2020 to Question 7222 on Offshore Industry: Discrimination, when his Department's review of regulations on the treatment of seafarers will commence; when the terms of reference of that review will be published; and when the trade unions organising seafarer (a) Ratings and (b) Officers will be consulted.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: The Equality Act 2010 (Work on Ships and Hovercraft) Regulations 2011 were designed to harmonise legislation as well as provide full protection to the individual. We are currently considering necessary amendments to the Regulations. As part of that review we will consider all the Regulations therein. In undertaking such a review, we will of course work with our social partners, including the relevant trade unions.

Shipping: Crew

Cat Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to his Department's Maritime 2050 strategy, whether the social framework for the UK maritime workforce proposed in that strategy will include steps to prevent offshore-based maritime employers from discriminating against seafarers on the grounds of protected characteristics.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: We are committed to develop the concept of a social framework, as referred to in the Maritime 2050 strategy. The aspiration is to provide clarity on the standards of welfare expected for our maritime workforce, regardless of whether they are working on land or at sea. This could include a review of all employment legislation explicitly pertaining to seafarers’ work and social protection, ensuring close alignment with the protections available to those working in land-based roles. As a coastal and flag State, international law generally restricts the UK applying its domestic legislation to vessels operating outside its territorial waters and not registered in the UK.

Shipping: Crew

Cat Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions he has had with the Minister for Women and Equalities on employer discrimination against seafarers on grounds of protected characteristics.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: I have not had any recent discussions with the Minister for Women and Equalities on employer discrimination against seafarers on the grounds of protected characteristics. However, officials from my Department have been liaising with counterparts in the Government Equalities Office (GEO). Furthermore, officials have also been working with the International Maritime Organization and the International Labour Organization as part of the international work on women in maritime which has included discussions on how to prevent discrimination on the grounds of protected characteristics

Shipping: EEA Nationals

Cat Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what his policy is on the enforcement of the Equality Act 2010 (Work on Ships and Hovercraft) Regulations 2011 for seafarers from European Economic Area countries following the UK's departure from the EU.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: Any seafarer of an EEA country working in Great Britain is currently able to bring a discrimination claim against their GB-based employer to employment tribunal under the Equality Act 2010 (Work on Ships and Hovercraft) Regulations 2011. The UK’s departure from the EU will not change this in any way.

Roads: Construction

Alex Sobel: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department is taking to encourage new road developments to take adequate account of (a) cyclists and (b) pedestrians.

Chris Heaton-Harris: The Government’s National Planning Policy Framework advises local authorities to promote healthy, inclusive and safe places which encourage walking and cycling. The four national highway authorities published joint guidance in November 2019 on how to design cycling infrastructure into strategic road schemes. The Conservative Party manifesto announced a £350 million Cycling Infrastructure Fund, with mandatory design standards for new routes. The Department will shortly be publishing revised guidance for local authorities on designing safe and efficient cycling infrastructure, which will need to be considered when setting local standards and in the development of new road schemes.

Veterans: Railways

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether the Veterans' Railcard will include the dependants of veterans.

Chris Heaton-Harris: Yes, the Department will make good on our promise to ensure that spouses and dependent children will also be able to benefit from discounts when traveling with the railcard holder.

Transport: Infrastructure

Bob Seely: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent estimate he has made of the average (a) amount and (b) proportion of the original cost estimate of overspend on major infrastructure projects.

Chris Heaton-Harris: The Department does not calculate the information requested. Information about the Department’s projects is published annually in the Department’s Annual Report, available here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/824019/2018-2019-dft-annual-report-web.pdf. Information can also be found in the Annual Report and Accounts of individual delivery bodies. In addition to the Department’s own processes, financial and other relevant information about the performance of our largest projects, is published annually by the Infrastructure and Projects Authority (IPA). The latest (2019) Annual Report can be found here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/817654/IPA_AR_MajorProjects2018-19_web.pdf

Bus Services: Disability

Marion Fellows: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the cost of installing audio-visual equipment on (a) mid- and (b) late-life buses.

George Freeman: In 2018 the previous Government consulted on proposals for requiring the provision of audible and visible information on-board local bus and coach services in Great Britain. In particular, it sought evidence on the impact of installing audio-visual equipment on different vehicles. Responses were received from a range of stakeholders, including representatives of smaller operators. We are finalising our response to the consultation and will announce our next steps in due course.

Bus Services: Disability

Marion Fellows: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much funding was allocated to installing audio-visual equipment on buses in (a) Scotland, (b) England, (c) Wales, (d) Northern Ireland in the latest period for which figures are available.

George Freeman: Alongside publication of its 2018 Inclusive Transport Strategy, the previous Government allocated £2 million to help smaller local bus and coach operators provide audible and visible information on board their services. This money will be made available to operators in England, Scotland and Wales through a funding competition later this year, and further information on how they can apply for it will be made available in due course. Equalities policy is devolved in Northern Ireland and operators there are not covered by this scheme.

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

Post Office: Public Appointments

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to Answer of 28 January 2020 to Question 6031 on Post Office: Public Appointments, who occupied the role of Shareholder Non-Executive Director on the Post Office Board prior to the appointment of Tom Cooper.

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to Answer of 28 January 2020 to Question 6031 on Post Office: Public Appointments, on what date Tom Cooper began his duties as Non-Executive Director of the Post Office Board.

Kelly Tolhurst: The Government has had a Shareholder Non-Executive Director on the Post Office Board since the company was separated from the Royal Mail in April 2012. Susannah Storey occupied the role from 18 April 2012 until 26 March 2014, followed by Richard Callard from 26 March 2014 until 27 March 2018. Tom Cooper has been the occupier of this role since 27 March 2018.

Post Office

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 27 January 2020 to Question 6034 on Post Office, if she will hold discussions with representatives of the Communication Workers Union on how that cultural change will be implemented.

Kelly Tolhurst: The Government recognises that postmasters are the backbone of the Post Office network and it is committed to ensuring cultural change takes place regarding the Post Office's engagement and relationship with postmasters. As such, I am keen to hold discussions with representatives of the Communication Workers Union. My office has been in touch with the Communication Workers Union and are waiting for a response.

EURATOM

Yasmin Qureshi: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether remaining in Euratom will be a Government objective in negotiations with the EU.

Nadhim Zahawi: The UK left the EU, including Euratom, on 31 January 2020. The Government is now preparing to negotiate the UK’s future relationship with the EU, including on civil nuclear. A Written Ministerial Statement made by my rt. hon. Friend the Prime Minister on 3rd February 2020 (HCWS86) on UK-EU relations stated that “There should be rapid progress towards a Civil Nuclear Agreement, given the implications for both sides of not doing so and the clear benefits of co-operation": https://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-statement/Commons/2020-02-03/HCWS86/The civil nuclear sector is of key strategic importance to the UK; our withdrawal from Euratom in no way diminishes our nuclear ambitions.

Sirius Minerals: Shares

Kirsten Oswald: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy,  if she will commission an inquiry into the events around the recent collapse in the share price of Sirius Minerals PLC.

Nadhim Zahawi: The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is the regulator responsible. If the FCA suspects serious misconduct, it has the powers to launch investigations and to hold companies or individuals to account.

Post Office

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 27 January 2020 to Question 6034 on the Post Office, if she will meet with representatives of the Communication Workers Union to discuss how that cultural change will be implemented.

Kelly Tolhurst: The Government recognises that postmasters are the backbone of the Post Office network and it is committed to ensuring cultural change takes place regarding the Post Office's engagement and relationship with postmasters. As such I am keen to hold discussions with representatives of the Communication Workers Union. My office has been in touch with the Communication Workers Union and are waiting for a response.

Business: LGBT People

Dawn Butler: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps she will take to improve LGBT+ workers representation on the boards of FTSE 100 companies.

Kelly Tolhurst: One of our top priorities is to make the UK the best place in the world to work and grow a business. New provisions in the UK Corporate Governance Code give employees a stronger voice in the boardroom. They require companies to have an employee director, a designated non-executive director or a formal employee advisory council, or to explain why another employee engagement mechanism has been adopted. The Government has legislated to require annual reporting on how boardrooms are engaging with their employees and taking their interests into account – this applies to public and private companies with more than 250 employees. The UK Corporate Governance Code also sets out that a company’s culture should value diversity and should promote diversity in appointments and succession planning. LGBT+ people should be able to be themselves in the workplace, so that they can do their best work and achieve their full potential. The Government Equalities Office (GEO) LGBT Action Plan published in July 2018 has over 75 commitments regarding the representation of LGBT people in the workplace. This action plan was informed by the National LGBT Survey of 108,000 respondents and sets out commitments to improve the lives of LGBT people in the workplace. GEO will create a comprehensive training package on tackling LGBT workplace discrimination that will be available to all employers, developing targeted interventions to improve the experiences of LGBT people at work.

Beer: Excise Duties

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what recent discussions she has had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on raising the small brewers relief threshold.

Kelly Tolhurst: HM Treasury is reviewing small brewers relief and further announcements will be made in due course through the Budget process.

Fireworks: Sales

Kenny MacAskill: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what plans she has to bring forward legislative proposals to restrict the sale of fireworks.

Kelly Tolhurst: The Office for Product Safety and Standards (OPSS) is developing a fact-based evidence base on the key issues that have been raised around fireworks including restricting the sale of fireworks. The evidence base is considering data on noise and disturbance, anti-social behaviour, non-compliance, environmental impact, and the impact on humans and animals. This will build a full picture of the data around fireworks in order to identify whether, and what, further action is appropriate.

Fireworks: Sales

Kenny MacAskill: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of devolving powers on the regulation of the sale of fireworks to the Scottish Parliament; and if she will take steps to devolve those powers.

Kelly Tolhurst: Under the Scotland Act 1998 the regulation of the sale and supply of goods and services to consumers and product safety and liability are reserved matters. The regulation of fireworks for these purposes is covered by the Fireworks Regulations 2004 and the Pyrotechnic Articles (Safety) Regulations 2015, which are the responsibility of this Department. The use and discharge of fireworks is devolved to the Scottish Government which has powers to impose certain restrictions on the use of fireworks. The Scottish Government has legislated in this area through the Fireworks (Scotland) Regulations 2004. There are no plans to devolve this matter further. The Office for Product Safety and Standards (OPSS) has been talking to officials in the Scottish Government about the recent consultation on fireworks undertaken by the Scottish Government. The outcomes of that consultation are being considered as part of OPSS’ work on a fireworks evidence base. This will build a full picture of the data around fireworks in order to identify what, if any, further action is appropriate.

IKEA: Coventry

Taiwo Owatemi: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if her Department will take steps to support employees affected by the closure of IKEA's store in Coventry.

Kelly Tolhurst: This will be a concerning time for employees and their families, and we are in contact with IKEA regarding the closure. I can equally assure you that Jobcentre Plus through its Rapid Response unit will work with IKEA to understand the level of employee support required and help all affected employees get back into employment as soon as possible.Jobcentre Plus’s Rapid Response Service is able to provide tailored support and can include some or all the following:Help with job searches, CV writing and interview skillsHelp to identify transferable skills and skills gaps, linked to the labour marketTraining to update skills, learn new ones and gain industry certification that will improve employabilityHelp to overcome barriers to attending training, securing a job or self-employment, such as childcare costs, tools, work clothes and travel costs.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Middle East: Peace Negotiations

Mrs Andrea Jenkyns: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will make representations to his Saudi Arabian counterpart on encouraging the Palestinians to return to the negotiating table to discuss the US Administration's Middle East peace plan proposal.

Dr Andrew Murrison: We have spoken to a range of regional partners about the US Administration's plan. We will continue to do so. Only Israeli and Palestinian leaders can determine whether these proposals can meet the needs and aspirations of the people they represent. We encourage them to give these plans genuine and fair consideration, and explore whether they might prove a first step on the road back to negotiations.

Hong Kong: Human Rights

Sarah Champion: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 13 January 2020 to Question 1369 on Hong Kong: Human Rights, what the timeline is for the publication of initial proposals for a scheme of Magnitsky-style sanctions; and whether those initial proposals will be subject to (a) public consultation and (b) parliamentary scrutiny.

Christopher Pincher: The United Kingdom will establish an autonomous global human rights sanctions regime in the coming months. We will do this by laying a Statutory Instrument (SI) under the Sanctions and Anti-Money Laundering Act 2018. The SI will be made affirmative and therefore subject to a debate in Parliament within 28 days after it has been laid. A global sanctions regime will allow us to respond to serious human rights violations or abuses anywhere in the world. The United Kingdom is committed to the promotion and protection of human rights. A human rights sanctions regime will help support our human rights objectives.The sanctions regime is not intended to target individual countries, but those who commit serious human rights violations or abuses anywhere in the world.It is not appropriate to confirm who may be designated under the sanctions regime before the designations are in place. To do this could reduce the impact of the designations.

Greek Islands: Refugees

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps the Government is taking to assist international partners in improving the (a) living conditions and (b) processing of asylum applications of refugees on the island of Lesvos.

Christopher Pincher: New migrant arrivals on the Greek islands are accommodated in Reception and Identification Centres ("hotspots") while they are processed in line with the 2016 EU/Turkey statement. Due to high numbers of arrivals, some of the hotspots are operating well beyond capacity and conditions for many migrants are poor. The United Kingdom continues to raise concerns about conditions on the islands in discussions with the Greek Government, most recently on 7 February by our Ambassador.We are working closely with the Greek Government, who retain responsibility for the situation of migrants in the country. We remain committed to supporting Greece's efforts in dealing with the migration challenge including through providing interpreters to support the Greek Reception Service; a United Kingdom Border Force search-and-rescue cutter in the Aegean; and over £500,000 to support the humanitarian needs of migrants on the islands for the 2019/20 winter.

Israel: Palestinians

Yasmin Qureshi: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether it remains the policy of the UK Government to support a solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict that would lead to Jerusalem as a shared capital of the Israeli and Palestinian states.

Dr Andrew Murrison: The UK's longstanding position on the Middle East Peace Process is clear and has not changed: we support a negotiated settlement leading to a safe and secure Israel living alongside a viable and sovereign Palestinian state; based on 1967 borders with agreed land swaps and a just, fair, agreed and realistic settlement for refugees. It must also ensure Jerusalem is a shared capital of the Israeli and Palestinian states, with access and religious rights of both peoples respected.

Israel: Palestinians

Yasmin Qureshi: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the US Administration’s Peace to Prosperity plan in supporting a return to negotiations between Israelis and Palestinians.

Dr Andrew Murrison: All serious proposals for peace deserve a fair hearing. A peace agreement between Israelis and Palestinians that leads to peaceful coexistence could unlock the potential for the entire region, and provide both sides with the opportunity for a brighter future. Only Israeli and Palestinian leaders can determine whether these proposals can meet the needs and aspirations of the people they represent. We encourage them to give these plans genuine and fair consideration, and explore whether they might prove a first step on the road back to negotiations.

Commonwealth: LGBT People

Yasmin Qureshi: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps the Government is taking to promote LGBT rights in (a) Commonwealth nations in which homosexuality is a criminal offence and (b) other Commonwealth nations.

Mrs Heather Wheeler: We continue to raise the importance of countering discrimination within the Commonwealth, including on grounds of gender identity or sexual orientation. Working through the UN Human Rights Council, the Council of Europe, the Commonwealth and other multilateral fora, we regularly raise concerns about countries that do not comply with their human rights obligations and promote nondiscrimination against LGBT people. The UK was one of the founding members of the Equal Rights Coalition (ERC) a grouping of 42 like-minded countries working together with civil society to address violence and discrimination against LGBT individuals, and the ongoing criminalisation of same sex conduct in 70 countries.The UK took over the role of ERC co-chair in June 2019, in partnership with Argentina and will host an international conference on LGBT rights in London on 27-29 May. The conference will address the issues of violence, discrimination and ongoing criminalisation and will set out how the ERC proposes to address those issues with the launch of a new ERC Strategy.In her speech to the Commonwealth Forums in April 2018, the former Prime Minister set out the UK's readiness to support any member state wanting to reform outdated legislation that makes discrimination on the grounds of gender identity or sexual orientation possible and stressed the importance of our common value of equality, a value that is clearly stated in the Commonwealth Charter. As part of that offer the UK announced a £5.6m programme working with civil society organisations to support those countries seeking to reform outdated discriminatory legislation affecting women, girls and LGBT individuals.

Exports: Falkland Islands

Lloyd Russell-Moyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he will take to ensure that the Falkland Islands continues to have tariff free exports to the EU after the transition period.

Christopher Pincher: The Government has always been clear that we are committed to engaging Overseas Territories as the United Kingdom exits the EU, to ensure that their interests and priorities are properly taken into account.We are seeking a bold and ambitious Free Trade Agreement with the EU and want to have the greatest possible tariff- and barrier-free trade with our European neighbours, so that British companies, including Falkland Islands companies, have the maximum freedom to trade with and operate within European markets.We also welcome the substantive input we have received from the Falkland Islands' Government as the United Kingdom prepares for negotiations with the EU.

Cayman Islands: Financial Services

Lloyd Russell-Moyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he will take to ensure that the financial services sector in the Cayman Islands is not adversely affected by the UK leaving the EU.

Christopher Pincher: During the United Kingdom's EU membership, the Overseas Territories have accessed the EU market for services on a third country basis, meaning there is no direct impact of the United Kingdom's departure from the EU on the Cayman Islands' ability to access to the EU market for services.The Government has always been clear that it will robustly represent the Overseas Territories' interests internationally and the Government is fully committed to engaging all the Overseas Territories as we exit the EU, to ensure that their interests and priorities are properly taken into account in United Kingdom-EU negotiations.

Turks and Caicos Islands: Undocumented Migrants

Lloyd Russell-Moyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment has his Department has made of recent trends in the level of irregular migration into Turks and Caicos from Haiti.

Christopher Pincher: Recent years have seen a rise in the numbers of people making the dangerous journey by sea from Haiti to the Turks and Caicos Islands (TCI). The overloaded vessels - carrying at times over 200 people - attempt to arrive into the Islands clandestinely, often under the cover of darkness and over dangerous reefs. The newly launched National Security Strategy for TCI aims to deter and ultimately reduce the number of migrants attempting the journey, including by increasing TCI's capability to intercept boats at sea. Improved coordination and higher rate of interception, means that fewer vessels are now reaching TCI. Those arrested at sea, and brought to land, are repatriated by air to Haiti.The United Kingdom and TCI Government are reviewing our ability to intercept vessels far earlier in their journey, and are working with international partners including the US Coastguard to achieve this. The National Security Strategy also focuses on tackling the criminal networks that exploit migrants making the journey.

Turkey: Human Rights

Fabian Hamilton: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations he has made to his Turkish counterpart on the (a) prosecution of (i) Amnesty International Turkey's Tan Kilic and Idil Eser and (ii) other human rights defenders in that country and (b) legitimacy of human rights defenders and their work.

Christopher Pincher: We remain concerned by the Amnesty arrests in the summer of 2017, as well as that of the civil society activist Osman Kavala in October the same year, and have been following both cases closely. We have raised their cases at ministerial level with the Turkish Government on several occasions, most recently in January this year. We hope that the outstanding charges against them can be brought to a timely and equitable conclusion. We will be monitoring the next hearing on 19 February.We have long encouraged Turkey to work towards the full protection of fundamental rights, including those of human rights defenders, and in support of freedom of expression. The United Kingdom recognises that human rights defenders play an essential role in promoting and protecting democracy, respect for human rights and the rule of law. Our commitment to human rights defenders was publicly emphasised by the publication in July 2019 of the document 'UK Support for Human Rights Defenders'. We will continue to engage the Turkish Government on these important issues.

Rendition

Kenny MacAskill: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations he has received from Police Scotland for him to hold discussions with his counterpart in the US Administration on the investigation into alleged use of Scottish Airports for rendition flights.

Christopher Pincher: As this is an ongoing Police Scotland investigation it is not appropriate to comment substantively.

Jiang Rong and Wang Yi

Taiwo Owatemi: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his Chinese counterpart on the arrests and detentions of (a) Pastor Wang Yi and (b) Mrs Jiang Rong.

Mrs Heather Wheeler: British diplomats met with Chinese officials in January 2019, to express concern about the pressures facing Christians in China, and directly raised Pastor Wang's case. Reports suggest Jiang Rong was released in June 2019, after six months imprisonment. We have not raised her case directly with the Chinese authorities. On 2 January, Lord (Tariq) Ahmad issued a statement expressing serious concerns about the recent sentencing of Pastor Wang Yi to nine years in prison following a secret trial and called on China to uphold the fundamental rights and freedoms guaranteed by China's constitution and international law. The freedom to practice, change or share ones faith or belief without discrimination or violent opposition is a human right that all people should enjoy.

Burma: Religious Freedom

Taiwo Owatemi: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent representations he has made to the government in Myanmar on the authorities treatment of (a) Kachin Christians and (b) Rohingya Muslims in that country.

Mrs Heather Wheeler: The UK continues to make representations to the Government of Myanmar about the need to protect the Kachin, Rohingya and other minority groups in Myanmar. We agree with the UN Fact Finding Mission's report that the Myanmar Military is responsible for serious human rights violations in Rakhine and Kachin State.In September 2019, Baroness Sugg raised the Rakhine Advisory Commission (RAC) recommendations with the Rakhine State Government. If properly implemented, the RAC recommendations would improve the lives of the Rohingya currently in Myanmar and create the conditions for the Rohingya in Bangladesh to return to Myanmar in a safe, dignified, voluntary and sustainable way. On 23 January, I encouraged the Government of Myanmar to abide by the International Court of Justice's provisional measures and implement the recommendations of the Independent Commission of Enquiry in order to protect the Rohingya and to bring the perpetrators of atrocities to justice. The British Ambassador to Myanmar reinforced these points with the Myanmar Minister for International Co-operation, Kyaw Tin.We remain concerned by restrictions on Freedom of Religion or Belief in Myanmar. We have raised our concerns about destruction of places of worship and discriminatory provisions within citizenship laws. In July 2019, The British Ambassador to Myanmar raised the issue of religious persecution and expressed concern at reports of forced conversions (to Buddhism) with the Myanmar Minister of Religious and Cultural Affairs.

Department of Health and Social Care

General Practitioners: Standards

Sir Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many GP patients in (a) Preston, (b) the North West and (c) England failed to secure a same-day appointment with their GP practice in each of the last three years.

Jo Churchill: The data on the number of patients that have failed to secure a general practice appointment is not collected or held centrally.

Levomepromazine

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of the supply of Levomepromazine.

Jo Churchill: The Department fully understands that maintaining access to levomepromazine is vitally important to many people in this country.The Department has well established processes to manage and mitigate supply problems that may arise at any one time.We are aware that one of the suppliers of levomepromazine injection is experiencing a short-term issue. However, supplies from an alternative supplier remain available in sufficient quantities to meet demand.Levomepromazine tablets are currently available and we are not aware of any issues that will impact supply.

Nurses: West Midlands

Mr Andrew Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans he has to recruit more nurses in the West Midlands.

Edward Argar: The Government will deliver 50,000 more nurses in the National Health Service in England. The Government has not set targets specific areas of the country. It is for individual employers to determine their workforce recruitment plans based on their local service needs.The Government has already taken steps to deliver this national nursing commitment through providing a new financial support package. Eligible pre-registration nursing students will benefit from at least £5,000 per academic year which they will not need to pay back. This new grant will mean students have access to more money than under previous education funding systems and will encourage more people to apply, accept places and complete their courses.A significant part of securing the future workforce, including nurses, will be through ensuring the NHS is the best place to work. A ‘new offer’ for all NHS staff will be released alongside the final NHS People Plan, which will detail the support that they can expect to receive from their employer.

Paramedical Staff: Training

Meg Hillier: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will include student paramedics on the NHS scheme for claiming student placement expenses.

Meg Hillier: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has undertaken an impact assessment on the effect on student paramedic recruitment of the decision to exclude student paramedics from the NHS scheme for claiming student placement expenses.

Edward Argar: The Department has not undertaken an impact assessment on excluding paramedics from re-imbursement of clinical placement expenses. From September 2020, new and continuing pre-registration paramedic science students will be eligible for the expenses incurred on clinical placements, as currently covered by the Learning Support Fund. The NHS Business Services Authority will publish the rules for the next academic year as soon as possible, as the funding provided as part of the current Learning Support Fund needs to be incorporated into the additional maintenance and childcare funding announced in December 2019.

Hormone Replacement Therapy: Shortages

Sarah Olney: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to help prevent further shortages of HRT products.

Jo Churchill: We are aware of ongoing supply issues with some hormone replacement therapy (HRT) preparations due to a range of issues including manufacturing issues, regulatory issues and problems accessing the raw pharmaceutical ingredient as well as commercial decisions made by some companies to divest these products. Although some HRT products are affected by supply issues, supplies of other alternative HRT products remain available.We have been working closely with all suppliers of HRT preparations to maintain overall supply to patients, and we anticipate the supply situation will improve from the end of this month.On 4 October 2019, we also added HRT products to the to the list of medicines that cannot be parallel exported from the United Kingdom market.

Department of Health and Social Care: Offshore Funds

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department’s (a) anti-fraud and (b) anti-money laundering procedures review will investigate (i) payments by his Department to offshore accounts and (ii) the use of offshore accounts by his Department's (A) suppliers and (B) senior staff.

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much money (a) the NHS and (b) his Department paid into offshore bank accounts in the financial year 2018-19.

Edward Argar: We have assumed ‘offshore accounts’ refers to any foreign bank account. The Department makes payments to foreign bank accounts as part of its normal business. Business as usual anti-fraud checks are routinely undertaken on supplier bank accounts whether foreign or within the United Kingdom to ensure we understand the purpose of the payment, that it is appropriately approved and there is evidence to demonstrate the funds are being sent to the correct accounts. If there is a lack of clarity on why a foreign bank account is being used it is queried as part of the checks.We are bound by the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 to compete new supplier contracts across the European Union, so suppliers may be based in, and therefore bank in, various different countries outside the UK.In 2018-19 the Department paid out £969,682,486.78 in foreign payments. The majority of this related to payments for reciprocal healthcare (£822,560,432) and to the World Health Organization (£23,947,023). We do not hold any information on foreign payments made by the NHS.NHS England and NHS Improvement have looked at all foreign payment runs made in 2018-19 for NHS England only, and the total value of payments to foreign bank accounts is £29,322,438. This excludes clinical commissioning groups, commissioning support units, and the Trust Development Agency and Monitor.

Pneumococcal Diseases: Vaccination

Anne Marie Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to help ensure that the pneumococcal vaccine is available to all people who are eligible.

Jo Churchill: The Department is aware that there is currently limited availability of the pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine (PPV23), due to manufacturing capacity constraints. Further deliveries of the vaccines are due at the end of February 2020.Public Health England has issued comprehensive guidance to the National Health Service that provides information to clinicians on the management of potentially affected patients during this time of limited availability. General practices have been advised to prioritise PPV23 vaccinations based on clinical risk and to plan vaccinations to ensure demand is more consistent across the year.On the 6 November 2019, PPV23 was added to the list of medicines that cannot be parallel exported, further protecting United Kingdom supplies and vaccine availability.The vaccine differs from the pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV13) vaccine used for the routine childhood programme. There is no supply issue affecting the PCV13 vaccine used in infants and toddlers—but this vaccine is not suitable for protection of older people.

Cancer: Diagnosis

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the news story entitled, Early cancer detection and survival to be prioritised by NHS, published by his Department in July 2019,  if he will make it his policy to publish regular progress reports on the Government's ambition for three-quarters of all cancers to be detected at an early stage by 2028.

Jo Churchill: The National Cancer Registration and Analysis Service (NCRAS) are currently developing a new early diagnosis metric which will be used specifically to track progress towards the 75% ambition. This new metric will provide a more comprehensive measure of early diagnosis, including more cancer sites than the current available measures.This metric will be regularly reported on the NCRAS website.

NHS: Staff

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 7 February to Question 9687, what assessment he has made of the (a) correlation between the level of (i) resources and (ii) workforce planning and the ability of commissioners and providers to employ sufficient numbers of suitably qualified, skilled and experienced staff at all times and (b) potential effect of increased accountability in Government on resourcing and workforce planning.

Edward Argar: Health Education England (HEE) provides leadership for the education and training system. HEE ensures that the workforce has the right skills, behaviours and training, and is available in the right numbers, to support the delivery of excellent healthcare and drive improvements.It is the responsibility of each individual employer to ensure that they have sufficient numbers of suitably qualified, skilled and experienced staff at all times, as part of strict registration regulations of the Care Quality Commission.The NHS People Plan aims to ensure a sustainable overall balance between supply and demand across all staff groups. We have committed to deliver 50,000 more nurses in the National Health Service by 2025.Proposals around workforce accountability, workforce resourcing and planning currently are being considered by the Government.

Accident and Emergency Departments: Eating Disorders

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many A&E attendances there were for people aged over 18 for eating disorders in (a) 2015, (b) 2016, (c) 2017, (d) 2018 and (e) 2019.

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many A&E attendances there were for children aged 17 and under for eating disorders in (a) 2015, (b) 2016, (c) 2017, (d) 2018 and (e) 2019.

Ms Nadine Dorries: The information is not available in the format requested.

Mental Health Services: Veterans

Ben Bradley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of fast-tracking access to mental health services for veterans.

Ms Nadine Dorries: As part of the Government’s continued commitment to the Armed Forces Covenant, veterans should receive priority treatment where it relates to a condition which results from their time in the armed forces, subject to clinical need.In England, the National Health Service have implemented this by offering veterans access to both mainstream and bespoke veterans mental health services. This means that veterans are often seen faster than the general public.

Wales Office

Renewable Energy: Wales

Ruth Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy on the renewable energy sector in Wales.

Simon Hart: I discuss a range of issues with the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy including the renewable energy sector in Wales. The Government is committed to ensuring that renewable energy is part of the UK’s future energy mix.

Universal Credit: Wales

Ruth Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what recent assessment he has made of the effect of universal credit on the cost of living of low-income families in (a) Newport West and (b) Wales.

Simon Hart: Universal Credit is helping parents to move into and remain in work, offering the best opportunity for families to move out of poverty and to improve children’s long-term outcomes. Universal Credit helps families with the cost of living by providing budgeting support and paying up to 85% of childcare costs. Since the introduction of Universal Credit to Newport West at the end of 2017, unemployment has fallen by over 40%, with 1,000 fewer people unemployed. The employment rate in Newport West is above the average for Great Britain. Universal Credit continues to have a positive effect on the labour market in Wales with 34.4% of claimants in Wales in employment. Unemployment in Wales is at a new record low, with an unemployment rate of 3.0%, below the UK average of 3.8%.

Department for Education

Children: Smart Devices

Steve Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether he has made an assessment of the implications for his policies of the effect on the development of children of the increasing use of smart speakers among 5-15 year olds; and if he will make a statement.

Nick Gibb: The EdTech Strategy, published in April last year, set out our vision for the use of technology in education and included commitments to help improve the evidence base on the impact of technology. The strategy, funded by £10 million, seeks to support the use of technology to help drive efficiencies, cut teacher workload, support inclusion, and ultimately, improve outcomes for children and young people. The strategy marks the development of the EdTech Demonstrator Schools and Colleges programme which aims to spread good practice in the use of technology. The programme is due to launch across the country in the Spring.

Schools: Solar Power

Yasmin Qureshi: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if his Department will make an assessment of the (a) environmental, (b) economic and (c) educational merits of installing solar panels on schools.

Nick Gibb: Reduction in energy use in new and existing school buildings to meet the net zero carbon emissions by 2050 target is a priority for the UK Government. Generating sustainable energy, where sites and buildings allow, is supported by Salix loans available to schools.Research into the environmental, economic and educational merit of photovoltaic solar panels is well founded and the Department welcomes schools developing educational outcomes that support work to mitigate climate change.

Basic Skills: Primary Education

Michael Tomlinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans he has to increase numeracy and literacy rates of primary school students from lower income households in the UK.

Michael Tomlinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans he has to increase numeracy and literacy rates of primary school students from lower income households in Poole.

Michael Tomlinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans he has to increase numeracy and literacy rates of primary school students from lower income households in Dorset.

Michael Tomlinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent steps his Department has taken to increase the levels of literacy and numeracy in Dorset.

Michael Tomlinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent steps his Department has taken to increase the levels of literacy and numeracy in Poole.

Michael Tomlinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent steps his Department has taken to increase the levels of literacy and numeracy throughout the UK.

Nick Gibb: The Government is committed to continuing to raise literacy and numeracy standards to ensure that all children, including those from disadvantaged backgrounds, can read fluently and have knowledge of the fundamentals of mathematics.To support literacy standards, the Department introduced the light touch phonics screening check for Year 1 pupils in 2012. Since then, performance has improved, with 82% of pupils meeting the expected standard in 2019, compared to 58% when the check was introduced. In 2018, the Department launched a £26.3 million English Hubs Programme. The programme is led by 34 primary schools across England and supports nearly 3000 schools across England to improve their teaching of reading through systematic synthetic phonics, early language development, and reading for pleasure. The English Hubs are focused on improving educational outcomes for the most disadvantaged pupils in Reception and Year 1. Broadclyst Community Primary School is working closely with nine schools across the Dorset area, and aims to support up to 85 schools across Dorset, West Somerset and Devon.To support mathematics standards, the Department funds a network of 37 Maths Hubs which provide school-based continuous improvement in mathematics education for all pupils from Reception year through to post-16 study in England. The Department is also investing in the £76 million Teaching for Mastery programme, which is based on teaching methods in the highest performing jurisdictions and aims to reach 11,000 schools from 2016 to 2022. This includes a ‘mastery readiness’ programme to support schools with the greatest need. We have seen good progress in mathematics – in 2019, 79% of pupils across all schools in England met the expected standard at Key Stage 2 in maths. This is an increase of 9% since new tests were introduced in 2016 and includes a 3% rise in the latest results. Maths Hubs engaged with 84 schools in the Poole and Dorset local authorities in the last academic year (2018-19), and they aim to support another 99 in the current academic year (2019-20).

Ministry of Justice

Child Arrangements Orders: Grandparents

James Cartlidge: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what progress he has made on improving child access rights for grandparents.

Wendy Morton: The Government understands the difficulties that some grandparents face in continuing relationships with their grandchildren following disputes arising from parental separation. We wish to understand the outcome of the President of the Family Division’s consultation on recommendations for reforming how child arrangements cases are dealt with by the family court before deciding whether any specific proposals are needed in respect of child arrangements and grandparents. The Government will carefully consider those proposals when published.

Terrorism: Sentencing

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the highest number of previous terrorism-related offences committed by people before being given an immediate custodial sentence for that offence was in the latest period for which that information is available.

Chris Philp: The requested information could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

Terrorism: Sentencing

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the highest number of terrorism-related previous offences was for people convicted of a terrorism-related offence and not given an immediate custodial sentence in each of the last three years; and what the sentence was for the most recent offence in each of those cases.

Chris Philp: The requested information could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

Department for International Trade

Overseas Trade: Carbon Emissions

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, with reference to the Prime Minister's speech in Greenwich on 3 February 2020, what steps the Government is taking to calculate the UK's carbon footprint in relation to (a) inward and (b) outward trade; and what estimate he has made of the potential increase in that footprint after the transition period.

Graham Stuart: The Department for International Trade is considering how to factor climate change and environmental impacts into the Government’s trade strategy, in order to drive the transition to a more sustainable global economy, whilst delivering economic benefits for the UK. Climate change and the need to reduce carbon emissions is driving a global market for ‘clean’ technologies, services and infrastructure. The Government will maintain and seek to advance the UK’s world-leading environmental, labour and anti-corruption standards, including to support domestic climate ambition and UK low carbon industries, technology and innovation.

Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government

Housing: Disability and Older People

Dr Lisa Cameron: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what progress his Department has made on helping to ensure that new properties are built with good accessibility standards for (a) older and (b) disabled people.

Esther McVey: Planning guidance on housing for older and disabled people published last summer strengthened the link between plan making and optional technical standards in the Building Regulations. Government will consult shortly on options of how to raise standards of accessibility in new homes.

Private Rented Housing: Tenants

Royston Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps the Government is taking to protect tenants from (a) landlords and (b) letting agents that are exploiting tenants by (i) misrepresenting properties in online advertising, (ii) unfairly holding deposits after the lease ends and (iii) illegally charging agency fees.

Esther McVey: The Government has already taken steps to protect tenants from the small minority of landlords and letting agents that may seek to exploit them. Landlords and agents are responsible for the accuracy of advertisements and listings they post online. Misleading advertisements and listings may constitute a breach of consumer protection legislation, such as the transparency provisions of the Consumer Rights Act 2015.  The additional steps Government takes are detailed in the Tenancy Deposit Protection legislation, which allows tenants to challenge their deposit being held unfairly when their tenancies end, with recourse to dispute resolution if there is no agreement on deposit repayment. Additionally under the Tenant Fees Act 2019, which came into force last June, landlords or letting agents are prevented from charging unfair fees in connection with the tenancy.  Landlords and agents can be subject to enforcement action by Trading Standards and fined if they are found to have illegally charged prohibited fees. Trading Standards are supported by a new lead enforcement authority for lettings, the National Trading Standards Estate and Letting Agency Team, which is funded by Government to provide advice and support to local authorities.

Affordable Housing: Wycombe

Mr Steve Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the (a) effectiveness and (b) efficiency of affordable housing schemes in Wycombe; and if he will make a statement.

Esther McVey: The Government is committed to increasing the supply of social housing and has made £9 billion available through the Affordable Homes Programme to March 2022 to deliver approximately 250,000 new affordable homes in a wide range of tenures, including Social Rent.   Wycombe has a total housing stock of over 73,000 homes (2018) and almost 10,000 of these are affordable homes. Over 100 new affordable homes were built in the area in 2018-19 To enable councils and housing associations to build more we have increased the size of the Affordable Homes Programme, re-introduced social rent, removed the HRA borrowing cap for local authorities, and have set out a long-term rent deal for councils and housing associations in England from 2020.   Breakdowns of delivery by borough are available in live table 1011 can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-affordable-housing-supply.

Community Assets

Bim Afolami: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of regulations used by local authorities in relation to changing the classification of assets of community value.

Jake Berry: The Government has committed to improving the assets of community value scheme which was introduced through the Localism Act 2011. As part of this, we will assess the overall the effectiveness of the regulations for local authorities, asset owners and voluntary and community groups to ensure that any legislation the Government introduces will meet our objective of supporting communities to protect those assets that are under threat.

Buildings: Insulation

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, which types of non-ACM cladding systems have failed the combustibility test.

Esther McVey: Holding answer received on 10 February 2020



This is part of an ongoing, systematic investigation into the fire risks from non-ACM cladding systems and there are no success or failure criteria.BRE Report Number P111324-1006 (M5D6V1), sets out in detail the methodology, a copy was placed in the House library on 11 February 2019 in response to question UIN217589 and can be found here: http://data.parliament.uk/DepositedPapers/Files/DEP2019-0225/Cladding_Research_Interim_Report_M5D6_redacted.pdf.The Independent Expert Advisory Panel (IEAP) has issued Advice on the measures building owners should take to ensure their buildings are safe. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/building-safety-advice-for-building-owners-including-fire-doors.

Buildings: Insulation

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether it remains his policy that the cost of removing unsafe cladding on buildings should be borne by the freehold owners of those properties and not by leaseholders.

Esther McVey: Holding answer received on 10 February 2020



The Government has committed to fully fund the removal and replacement of unsafe ACM cladding on private sector residential high-rise buildings. Government intervention is wholly exceptional due to the unparalleled fire risk ACM poses.Building safety is the responsibility of the building owner, and they must remedy any safety risks uncovered. Building owners should consider all routes to meet costs, and protect leaseholders – for example through warranties and recovering costs from contractors for incorrect or poor work.

Buildings: Fire Prevention

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 31 January 2020 to Question 8382 on Buildings: Fire Prevention, what assessment his Department has made of the implications for its policies of mortgage lenders' responses to its Advice for Building Owners of Multi-storey, Multi-occupied residential buildings document.

Esther McVey: 'Building safety advice for building owners, including fire doors',  published in January 2020, provides the latest advice for building owners concerned about the fire safety of their building/s. It is not a compliance document for mortgage lenders. Government is continuing to engage with the mortgage industry to understand its approach to risk.

Buildings: Insulation

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 3 February 2020 to Question 8384 on Buildings: Fire Prevention, whether the Independent Expert Advisory Panel plans to provide any advice to leaseholders in buildings with (a) ACM cladding and (b) exterior cladding systems not yet tested by the owner of those buildings.

Esther McVey: The role of the Independent Expert Advisory Panel (IEAP) is to advise the Secretary of State on measures that should be taken relating to fire and building safety in existing buildings. Following the IEAP’s advice, updated advice has been issued to building owners on measures they should take to ensure building safety. Leaseholders can access free initial specialist advice to understand their rights through the Leasehold Advisory Service (LEASE): www.lease-advice.org/

High Rise Flats: Insulation

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 31 January 2020 to Question 8382 on Buildings: Fire Prevention, how many high-rise private sector residential building owners have submitted applications to the Government's ACM remediation fund as at 4 February 2020.

Esther McVey: This information is published in the Building Safety Programme Data Release, with latest data as at 31 December 2019 published here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/building-safety-programme-monthly-data-release-december-2019 . The next update, referring to the situation at the end of January, will be included in the next Data Release, which will be published on 13 February.

Buildings: Insulation

Steve Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 3 February 2020 to Question 9039 on Buildings: Insulation, whether (a) he and (b) his Ministers have met any groups of affected leaseholders.

Esther McVey: Holding answer received on 10 February 2020



The Department has had regular correspondence and engagement with leaseholders living in buildings with unsafe cladding, and we are aware of the concerns they have. The Government’s priority is to ensure that unsafe ACM cladding is removed and replaced so that residents feel safe in their homes. The Department has engaged with a named contact for each building to ensure progress is being made.

Buildings: Insulation

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 31 January 2020 to Question 8382 on Buildings: Fire Prevention, for what reasons it took the Government more than two years to open the ACM remediation fund after the Grenfell Tower fire.

Esther McVey: In May 2018, the Government made £400 million available to social sector landlords to fund the removal and replacement of unsafe ACM cladding on high-rise residential social housing buildings.It became clear that too many private sector building owners were failing to take responsibility to ensure their buildings were made permanently safe, and at no cost to leaseholders. Therefore, the Government committed £200 million for the removal and replacement of unsafe ACM cladding on private sector residential high-rise buildings.This funding will remove that barrier. Government intervention to provide funding for the removal of unsafe ACM cladding is wholly exceptional. It is based on the unparalleled fire risk ACM poses, the very real public safety concerns and the abject failure of many building owners to do the right thing by their residents.

Buildings: Insulation

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 31 January 2020 to Question 8382 on Buildings: Fire Prevention, whether an additional fund will be made available to leaseholders in buildings whose homes are currently unmortgageable as a result of the presence of (a) ACM cladding and (b) exterior cladding systems not yet tested by the owner of those buildings.

Esther McVey: Government has committed £600 million to remediate high-rise residential buildings with unsafe ACM cladding. This Government intervention is wholly exceptional. It is based on the unparalleled fire risk ACM poses at this height.   Building safety is the responsibility of the building owner, and they must remedy any safety risks. Building owners should consider all routes to meet costs, protecting leaseholders where they can – for example through warranties and recovering costs from contractors for poor work.   However, we do not want the cost to be a barrier to remediation, so the Department is considering options to support leaseholders with Her Majesty’s Treasury. Building Owners should be transparent about any remediation plans with lenders and managing agents.

Recreation Spaces

Taiwo Owatemi: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government,  what steps he is taking to protect green spaces from development.

Esther McVey: Holding answer received on 10 February 2020



We updated the National Planning Policy Framework in July 2018. This includes a policy on the designation of Local Green Space, under which communities can identify and protect local green spaces of particular importance to them. The Framework also sets out that existing open space should not be built on unless it is shown to be surplus to requirements, or the loss would be replaced by alternative provision.

Leasehold

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to the report entitled Tackling unfair practices in the leasehold market: Summary of consultation responses and Government response, published in December 2017, what plans he has has to bring forward legislative proposals to amend section 121 of the Law of Property Act 1925.

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to the report entitled Tackling unfair practices in the leasehold market: Summary of consultation responses and Government response, published in December 2017, what plans he has has to bring forward legislative proposals to regulate rent charges paid by freeholders.

Esther McVey: Holding answer received on 10 February 2020



The Government is committed to promoting fairness and transparency for homeowners and ensuring that consumers are protected from abuse and poor service. The Government is aware that homeowners could be subject to a possession order or the granting of a lease of their home by the rentcharge owner over rentcharge arrears. As part of our leasehold reform work we have committed to repeal Section 121 of the Law of Property Act 1925 to ensure homeowners are not subjected to unfair possession orders.Furthermore, where people pay estate rentcharges, it is not right that these homeowners have limited rights to challenge these costs. That is why the Government intends to legislate to give freeholders on private and mixed tenure estates equivalent rights to leaseholders to challenge the reasonableness of estate rentcharges as well as a right to apply to the First-tier Tribunal to appoint a new manager to manage the provision of services covered by estate rentcharges.We are moving forward with legislation with these measures.Furthermore, the Government asked the Regulation of Property Agents working group, chaired by Lord Best, to look at how service charges for leaseholders - and estate rentcharges for resident freehold homeowners - could be made more transparent. The group also considered in what circumstances other fees and charges, such as administration charges or permission fees which affect both leaseholders and freeholders, are justified or whether they should be capped or banned. The working group published its final report to Government (see: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/regulation-of-property-agents-working-group-report). We are considering the report’s recommendations and will announce next steps in due course.

Landlords: Registration

Sir Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many landlords in England are registered on the Government's rogue landlord database; and what his estimate is of the number of rogue landlords who are not yet registered; and if he will make a statement.

Esther McVey: Holding answer received on 10 February 2020



There are 18 individual landlords and property agents and five companies currently registered on the database for offences committed since 6 April 2018.For mandatory inclusion on the database a landlord must be convicted of a banning order offence and receive a banning order. If the landlord receives a conviction for a banning order offence or receives two of more civil penalties for a banning order offence within a 12 month period then the local authority has the discretion to include the landlord on the database. The database is intended for the worst and most persistent offenders, who neglect their responsibilities to provide tenants safe homes.

Multiple Occupation: Licensing

Sir Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many houses in multiple occupation are licensed by local authorities; and what estimate he has made of the  number of unlicensed houses in multiple occupation in England; and if he will make a statement.

Esther McVey: Holding answer received on 10 February 2020



The Department gathers data from local authorities on the estimated number of Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMOs) annually. According to our most recent data covering 2018-2019, there are an estimated 516,000 HMOs.There are an estimated 140,000 properties which are licensable under mandatory HMO licensing, of these there are an estimated 76,000 currently unlicensed. Mandatory licensing applies to properties with five or more people from two or more households who share facilities, such as a kitchen and bathroom. Landlords are required to obtain a licence for these properties. Other HMOs may be subject to additional licensing by local authorities where there are 3 or more people sharing facilities. HMO licensing protects tenants from overcrowding and poor housing conditions.It is a duty of local authorities to ensure all licensable properties are licensed and that landlords who illegally let out unlicensed properties are prosecuted. Government is working with local authorities to support them to meet this duty through using the powers available to them.

Ministry of Defence

Maritime Patrol Aircraft

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps need to be taken before the new P-8 Poseidon aircraft reach full operational capability.

James Heappey: P-8 Poseidon full operating capability requires the full complement of nine aircraft, infrastructure and training facilities to be delivered at RAF Lossiemouth. These components will enable the RAF to become fully self-sustaining for generating trained personnel and for routine maintenance of the fleet of aircraft.

Maritime Patrol Aircraft: Antisubmarine Warfare

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent assessment he has made of the effect of the procurement of nine P-8 Poseidon aircraft on UK anti-submarine warfare capability; and if he will make a statement.

James Heappey: The P-8 Poseidon joins an integrated UK force of ships, submarines and helicopters in the anti-submarine warfare role. Poseidon's introduction marks a significant upgrade in the UK's ability to conduct anti-submarine operations, combined with a weapons system to counter these threats. The Poseidon is designed to conduct long range patrols providing extended surveillance missions at high and low altitudes. It is equipped with cutting-edge sensors which use high-resolution area mapping to find both submarines and surface vessels. It will also integrate seamlessly with our NATO allies. This will maintain operational freedom for our own submarines and apply pressure to those of our potential foes.

Boeing

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what commitment Boeing has given to maxmise UK workshare on future projects.

James Heappey: As part of the strategic prosperity relationship between Her Majesty's Government (HMG) and Boeing, the company has committed to growing its UK footprint and to increase research and development and UK supply chain spending. The company funds an Office of UK Industrial Capability to identify potential suppliers and provide training to increase the success of UK companies in bidding for work. Boeing and HMG have carried out a series of trade missions to the US, each of which has attracted around 30 companies from across the UK, who have had an opportunity to showcase their capabilities to senior programme managers. As part of investments in Sheffield - the first Boeing owned production facility outside of the US - and Lossiemouth, the company has placed work with a range of local supply chain companies.

International Military Services: Finance

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what due diligence his Department undertook on IMS Ltd’s financial activities and (a) anti-bribery policies, (b) risk management, (c) money laundering policies and (d) other internal controls following its reclassification as a Government entity by the Treasury for the financial year 2019-20.

James Heappey: IMS Ltd will now be subject to the Ministry of Defence's financial accounting and reporting processes.

Veterans: Proof of Identity

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the timescale is for Phase 2 of the Veterans ID card.

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps his Department is taking to publicise the Veterans ID card.

Johnny Mercer: Phase one of the Veterans ID card was launched in February 2019 and Service leavers now receive a card as part of the discharge process. Phase two will enable existing veterans to more quickly, easily, and securely prove they served in the UK Armed Forces so they can access the services they need, through digital means. We had hoped to have that in place by the end of 2019 but the requirement to future-proof the ID card so that veterans can access a wider range of benefits and to safeguard against fraudulent use means that this process will take longer.Information on how to apply will be released closer to the launch date at the following website:https://www.gov.uk/government/news/new-veterans-id-cards-rolled-out-to-service-leavers.The launch of the second phase will be accompanied by appropriate publicity.

Department for Work and Pensions

Social Rented Housing: Housing Benefit

Sarah Owen: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what savings have accrued to the public purse as a result of the removal of the spare room subsidy; and what estimate his Department has made of the administrative costs of that policy since its introduction.

Will Quince: The Removal of the Spare Room Subsidy (RSRS), introduced in 2013, encourages mobility within the social rented sector, strengthens work-incentives and makes better use of available social housing, while providing fairness to taxpayers on expenditure on Housing Benefit.The policy has saved over £2 billion since its introduction in April 2013. A breakdown by financial year is provided in the table below: Total Estimated Housing Benefit RSRS Deductions, 2013/14 to 2019/20 (£m pa) 2013/142014/152015/162016/172017/182018/192019/20385365355335320288290 NotesDeductions figures do not take into account any additional savings due to behavioural change before/after the policy has been introduced, for example moving to a smaller property to avoid a deduction.Figures do not include claimants on Universal Credit (UC) with a removal of the spare room subsidy (RSRS) deduction, as these data are not currently available. In terms of the cost of administering the RSRS, funding was made available to local authorities (LAs). Information is published in Housing Benefit subsidy circulars available on Gov.UK. To date (2019/20) administrative funding for the RSRS policy has been around £68m (which includes funding for the administration of Discretionary Housing Payments associated with the introduction of the RSRS policy).

Universal Credit

Jack Lopresti: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what plans her Department has to introduce a mechanism into universal credit to allow claimants to move their review date, in order to avoid fluctuations in their benefit payments when there is no change in wages.

Alan Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether she plans to change the calculation of universal credit payments to take account of when earnings are scheduled to be paid to claimants.

Will Quince: Assessment periods allow for UC awards to be adjusted on a monthly basis, ensuring that if a claimant’s income changes, they do not have to wait several months for a corresponding change in their UC award. Earnings are taken into account in the assessment period they are received and in this way the UC paid to claimants reflects, as closely as possible, the actual circumstances of a household during each monthly assessment period. The Department has been working closely with HM Revenues and Customs (HMRC) since UC went live in 2013 to support and inform employers who report payroll earnings, to emphasise the importance of timely reporting via the Real Time Information (RTI) system. HMRC have updated their guidance to reiterate to employers the importance of reporting payroll accurately and the impact of reporting payments late. Employers should already record on HMRC’s RTI system the date a salary is scheduled to be paid, rather than the date it is paid, where it is earlier due to a weekend, bank holiday or at Christmas.

Disability Living Allowance: Older People

Neil Coyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people over state retirement age receiving disability living allowance have had their lifetime awards reassessed in each of the last 10 years.

Justin Tomlinson: This information is only available at disproportionate cost to DWP as the Department does not have a business requirement for this information to be retained.

Children: Maintenance

Marion Fellows: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many parents owe more than £1000 in Child Maintenance Service arrears.

Mims Davies: For arrangements setup under the Child Maintenance service only, at the end of September 2019 there were 78,500 parents who owed more than £1,000 in Child Maintenance Service arrears.

Children: Maintenance

Marion Fellows: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many non-resident parents with child maintenance arrears of more than £1,000 the Child Maintenance Service has been unable to enforce collections on through (a) a deduction from earnings order, (b) a deduction from earnings request and (c) a deduction order.

Mims Davies: The information requested is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Wood-burning Stoves

Munira Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent assessment her Department has made of the effect of wood burning stoves on air quality.

Rebecca Pow: Defra assesses air quality in the UK through a combination of monitoring and modelling, as well as through the development and upkeep of a National Atmospheric Emissions inventory (NAEI). The NAEI is compiled annually to report total emissions by pollutant and source sector in a systematic way, and to facilitate compliance with our emissions reduction targets. Emissions from domestic combustion using wood as fuel have increased by 70 per cent since 2005. As recognised by the Committee on the Medical Effects of Air Pollutants, particulate matter is particularly harmful for health and the environment. The most recently published data from the NAEI shows that domestic combustion using wood as fuel accounted for 36 per cent of primary emissions of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) in 2017. We will publish the next annual update of the NAEI, with data for 2018, in the coming weeks. Wood burning stoves and coal fires are now the single largest contributor to our national emissions of particulate matter. We are already taking steps to tackle emissions from domestic burning. The Environment Bill currently before Parliament contains measures to reduce emissions from domestic solid fuel burning, the single largest contributor of fine particulate matter emissions. It will create a simpler mechanism for local authorities seeking to reduce smoke emissions within their areas. Additionally, in line with the Clean Air Strategy, Defra has consulted on the cleaner domestic burning of solid fuels and wood. We expect to publish the Government response to this consultation in the near future.

UN Convention on Biological Diversity: China

Alex Chalk: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, who will represent the Government at CoP15 of the Convention on Biological Diversity in Kunming, China, in the summer.

Rebecca Pow: The 15th Conference of the Parties of the Convention on Biological Diversity will be held in Kunming, China in October 2020. The make-up of the UK delegation will be confirmed closer to the time and will be dependent on the conference agenda. Decisions about UK Ministerial involvement will also be made closer to the time.

Birds: Pest Control

Greg Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to ensure the timely issuance of new general licences for the control of pest birds in England.

Rebecca Pow: The Secretary of State granted general licences for the lethal control of certain wild birds in June 2019, which are valid until 29 February 2020. Since June 2019, Defra has been undertaking a review of these general licences, including a public survey which generated over 4,400 responses, a review of scientific evidence and a series of workshops with licence users and other stakeholders. The Secretary of State will make an announcement soon on licensing arrangements from 1 March.

Animal Welfare: Standards

Mr John Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what responsibilities local authorities have to ensure high standards of animal welfare in their area.

George Eustice: Local authorities respond to individual cases of animal welfare and can allocate resources based on local priorities. Under the Animal Welfare Act 2006, local authorities in England and Wales have powers to enforce the Animal Welfare Act 2006, which includes powers of entry and seizure in order to inspect allegations of poor animal welfare and cruelty. Local authorities also have primary responsibility for the enforcement of legislation concerning animal welfare on farm, in transport and at markets. In addition, in England, local authorities have a statutory duty to enforce The Animal Welfare (Licensing of Activities Involving Animals) (England) Regulations 2018, which regulate pet selling, dog breeding, dog and cat boarding, riding schools and exhibiting animals. Under the 2018 Regulations, local authorities have powers to issue, refuse and revoke licences for the five regulated activities. Local authorities are also responsible for licensing zoos under the Zoo Licensing Act 1981 and independent racing greyhound tracks under The Welfare of Racing Greyhounds Regulations 2010”. Anyone concerned about a local authority’s handling of animal welfare cases can raise this in the first instance with the relevant local authority, of if not satisfied with the outcome, can refer the matter to the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman.

Home Office

Fracking: Police

Alexander Stafford: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of introducing a levy on shale gas companies to fund the cost of policing at shale gas sites.

Kit Malthouse: The Home Office has provided funding to Lancashire and North Yorkshire Police through the Special Grant Process to reimburse the police for the additional costs of fracking protests. Policing costs as a result of protests against fracking have reduced as fracking operations at the key Cuadrilla site at Preston New Road have ceased since October 2019.

Airguns: Regulation

Karin Smyth: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the oral contribution of 1 April 2019 of the Minister for Policing and the Fire Service, Official Report, column 786, what the timetable is for the publication of the outcome of the air weapons review which closed in February 2018.

Kit Malthouse: The Government fully understands the interest that Members of Parliament and others have in the outcomes of the review of air weapons regulation, and the concerns that have been expressed about the consequences, sometimes tragic, arising from the misuse of these weapons. We intend to publish our conclusions as soon as possible alongside a consultation on firearms safety issues, to which we committed during the passage of the Offensive Weapons Act.

Crime: Airguns

Karin Smyth: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many and what proportion of 10-19 year olds were victims of air weapons offences in each year since 2010.

Kit Malthouse: The Home Office collects statistics on the number of offences involving the use of firearms recorded by the police in England and Wales. The age of victim is only collected for more serious offences when the principal weapon is an air weapon. The number and proportion of all victims of serious air weapon offences is in the table.

Firearms: Injuries

Karin Smyth: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many and what proportion of under-18 year olds admitted to hospital for injuries caused by firearms were injured by firearms other than a (a) handgun, (b) rifle, (c) shotgun and (d) larger firearm in each year since 2010.

Kit Malthouse: The Home Office does not hold information on those admitted to hospital due to injuries caused by firearms. Information on hospital admissions are the responsibility of the Department of Health and Social Care. These are published by NHS Digital and are available here:https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/publications/statistical/hospital-admitted-patient-care-activity/2018-19

Firearms: Safety

Karin Smyth: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent progress she has made on a public consultation on firearms safety.

Karin Smyth: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the terms of reference will be for the public consultation on firearms safety.

Kit Malthouse: The firearms safety consultation will be published shortly. It will seek views on security arrangements for high muzzle-energy rifles and will cover other firearms safety issues that were raised during the passage through Parliament of the Offensive Weapons Act 2019.

Firearms: Licensing

Karin Smyth: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department,when she plans to respond to the consultation entitled, Statutory guidance to police on firearms licensing, which closed in September 2019.

Kit Malthouse: The Government launched a public consultation on the introduction of statutory guidance to the police on firearms licensing in July last year. The Home Office received over 11,000 responses to the consultation and these are now under consideration. The Government response to the consultation will be published in due course.

Firearms: Licensing

Karin Smyth: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when she plans to respond to the consultation entitled, Policing and Crime Act: proposals to implement legislation to define antique firearms, which closed in December 2017.

Kit Malthouse: The Policing and Crime Act 2017 contains a power to define in regulations which firearms can safely be regarded as antique and which still present a danger to the public and therefore require licensing.A public consultation was held in late 2017 to seek views on the detail of these regulations. We are presently considering all the responses received, many of which are necessarily technical, and we intend to publish theGovernment’s response and lay the regulations before Parliament as soon as possible.

Crime: Drugs

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent steps her Department has taken to tackle county lines drugs dealing.

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent estimate her Department has made of the number of children and young people exploited by county lines drug dealing networks.

Kit Malthouse: County lines have a devastating impact on communities. We are determined to disrupt these gangs and put an end to the exploitation of children and vulnerable adults. In October 2019 the Home Secretary announced £20m of targeted investment to support a package of measures to crack down on county lines gangs. This includes: increasing the capacity of the National County Lines Coordination Centre;supporting increased operational activity by British Transport Police on rail networks;exploiting technology and data to support disruption of county lines drug dealers using the road network;tackling money laundering and increasing cash and drug seizures; andspecialist support to victims and families to help young people exit their involvement. This investment is already having a direct impact, which is why we recently committed an additional £5m to increase efforts to tackle these ruthless gangs. This brings our overall investment to £25m over 2019/20 and 2020/21. The Children’s Commissioner’s report ‘Keeping Kids Safe’, published in February 2019, estimated that 27,000 children in England identify as a gang member. Children aged between 15-17 make up the majority of the vulnerable people involved in county lines, while both girls and boys are groomed and exploited, there is likely to be underrepresentation of both females and adults as victims.

Immigration

Hywel Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many immigration cases have taken longer than (a) six months and (b) one year to be resolved in each of the last five years.

Kevin Foster: Information on our immigration routes with service standards and whether they have been processed against these standards is available as part of our transparency data, at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/migration-transparency-data#uk-visas-and-immigration

Crime: Airguns

Karin Smyth: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate she has made of the number of young people under the age of 18  charged with air weapons offences.

Kit Malthouse: The Home Office collects data from the police in England and Wales on crimes recorded and on the outcomes of investigations. However, it is not possible to separately identify offences involving air weapons. A separate special collection on offences involving firearms does not collect information on charges.

Drugs: Misuse

Ronnie Cowan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when her Department will announce more details on the drugs summit taking place in Glasgow on 27 February 2020.

Ronnie Cowan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what relevant organisations and stakeholders have been invited to attend the drugs summit in Glasgow on 27 February 2020.

Kit Malthouse: The Summit will be an opportunity for dialogue between partners from all parts of the UK on the challenges of, and potential solutions to tackling the harms of, drug misuse. There will be representation at the Summit from all parts of the UK, including contributions from Glasgow, from public health leads of all four nations, and from UK Government Ministers as well as Ministers from each of the devolved administrations.The Summit will bring together different perspectives across healthcare, law enforcement, prevention and recovery. As part of this there will be discussion of the forthcoming findings of the independent Review of Drugs, hearing from Professor Dame Carol Black about the demand and supply landscape and the nature of drug misuse. Dame Carol’s work will make an important contribution to the evidence base that we can use to take action to tackle drug misuse and the harms it causes.Announcements on the Summit were made on 23 October 2019 and 24 January this year. Further information will be issued in due course. The full list of invitees is being finalised, taking account of suggestions from the devolved administrations in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland as well as from a range of UK Government departments and others. Invitations that have so far been issued include those to the chief medical officers for each part of the UK and chief scientists in relevant departments and in the devolved administrations. Further invitations will be issued over the coming days.

Protest: Social Media

Nickie Aiken: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she has made an assessment of the effectiveness of the Public Order Act 1986 in relation to social-media-driven protest with limited organisational structure.

Kit Malthouse: The Home Office continues to monitor developments in relation to demonstrations and are working closely with the relevant national police leads to review current public order powers to ensure that they are fit for purpose.

Police: Stun Guns

Louise Haigh: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the findings of the inquest into the death of Marc Cole, what assessment her Department has made of the safety of the use of tasers by the Police.

Kit Malthouse: The Government is committed to ensuring police have the resources, tools and powers they need to keep themselves and the public safe. Tasers provide officers with an important tactical option when facing potentially physically violent situations. However, the Government is clear that all use of force must be lawful, proportionate and necessary in all circumstances. Only less lethal weaponry which has been authorised by the Home Secretary may be used by police forces in England and Wales. There is an established process for the approval of less lethal weapons which takes into account relevant strategic, ethical, operational and societal issues, as well as an independent medical evaluation by the Scientific Advisory Committee for the Medical Implications of Less Lethal Weapons (SACMILL).Our sympathy is with Marc Cole’s family who have lost a loved one.

Cannabis: Imports

Crispin Blunt: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many schedule 1 (a) domestic and (b) import licences cannabis and cannabis-based products were granted in 2019.

Kit Malthouse: In 2019, the Drugs and Firearms Licensing unit issued to premises in Great Britain 362 domestic licences covering possession of schedule 1 drugs.Controlled drug import licences are issued for individual consignments with reference to the drug substance(s) contained in the shipment. An import licence can cover up to four different types of drug substance or preparation. A total of 452 import licences for shipments containing cannabis or with a controlled cannabinoid content were issued in 2019.

Immigration: Sports

Ben Bradley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent discussions her Department has had with (a) the Premier League, (b) the English Football League and (c) other national sports governing bodies on ensuring that the new immigration system meets the requirements of elite sports.

Kevin Foster: Home Office officials are in regular contact with each of the recognised Sports Governing Bodies, annually reviewing the criteria that applies to each sport. This process of review ensures we strike the right balance between enabling top level international sportspeople to come to the UK, whilst protecting opportunities for resident sportspeople.The Home Office approved Sports Governing Bodies are listed at Appendix M of the Immigration Rules: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/immigration-rules/immigration-rules-appendix-m-sports-governing-bodies.

Retail Trade: Crimes of Violence

Afzal Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she plans to take in response to her Department’s call for evidence on abuse and violence towards shopworkers.

Kit Malthouse: The Government recognises the damaging impact that violence and abuse can have on victims, businesses, and the wider community; and we are committed to tackling this issue. The call for evidence on violence and abuse toward shop staff was intended to help strengthen our understanding of the scale and extent of the issue. We are carefully analysing the responses before deciding what further action may be required and intend to publish the government’s response in due course.

Naturalisation

Sir Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the timeframe is for the decision on the application by a senior NHS Consultant with Case ID Number 24910589 for naturalisation as a British citizen which was acknowledged on 13 February 2019; and if she will make a statement.

Kevin Foster: This decision will be concluded by 12 February 2020.

Proscribed organisations

Stephen Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what progress she has made on the proscription of (a) System Resistance Network, (b) Sonnenkrieg Division, (c) Atomwaffen Division and (d) other extreme right organisations.

Brandon Lewis: Whilst we keep the list of proscribed groups under review, we do not routinely comment on whether an organisation is or is not under consideration forproscription.

Islamic State: British Nationals Abroad

Stephen Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps the Government is taking to monitor UK citizens in prison in northern Syria who are believed to have been supporting or fighting with ISIS.

Brandon Lewis: We recognise that the situation in northern Syria is fragile and complex. We are continuing to work closely with international partners and partners in the region to address issues associated with foreign terrorist fighters. It would not be appropriate to comment further on the monitoring of UK-linked individuals in detention in northern Syria. The Government’s position remains that those who have fought for or supported Daesh should, wherever possible, face justice for their crimes in the most appropriate jurisdiction, which will often be in the region where their offences have been committed. Any decision in relation to the continued detention, transfer or prosecution of detainees is ultimately a matter for authorities under whose jurisdiction the individuals are detained or located.

Drugs: Misuse

Jeff Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, who has been invited to attend the Glasgow summit on tackling drugs misuse on 27 February 2020; what the criteria was for participants to receive an invitation to that summit; whether people are still able to apply to attend that summit; and whether that summit will accept input and evidence from expert organisations not currently listed as attending.

Kit Malthouse: The Summit will be an opportunity for dialogue between partners from all parts of the UK on the challenges of, and potential solutions to tackling the harms of, drug misuse. There will be representation at the Summit from all parts of the UK, including contributions from Glasgow, from public health leads of all four nations, and from UK Government Ministers as well as Ministers from each of the devolved administrations.The Summit will bring together different perspectives across healthcare, law enforcement, prevention and recovery. As part of this there will be discussion of the forthcoming findings of the independent Review of Drugs, hearing from Professor Dame Carol Black about the demand and supply landscape and the nature of drug misuse. Dame Carol’s work will make an important contribution to the evidence base that can be used take action to tackle drug misuse and the harms it causes.The full list of invitees is being finalised, taking account of suggestions from the devolved administrations in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland as well as from a range of UK Government departments and others. Invitations that have so far been issued include those to the chief medical officers for each part of the UK and chief scientists in relevant departments and in the devolved administrations. Further invitations will be issued over the coming days. Attendance at the Summit is by invitation only and it is not possible to apply to be invited. There will not be scope to receive further evidence in addition to the evidence that will be discussed by attendees, as is usual for events of this nature.

Migrant Workers: Veterinary Medicine

Sir Roger Gale: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate she has made of the number of UK-trained overseas Veterinary Surgeons working in the UK under the current visa regulations that will be required to leave the UK in the next five years.

Kevin Foster: Veterinarians from outside the EU can apply to come to the UK under Tier 2 (General), our main route for skilled workers. Tier 2 is a route to settlement and so no Veterinary Surgeons who are in the UK on this route would be required to leave as long as they meet the settlement requirements. As Veterinarians are on the UK Shortage Occupation List, they are exempt from having to meet the settlement salary threshold.The EU Settlement Scheme makes it easy for Veterinary Surgeons who are EU citizens and want to stay in the UK to get the UK immigration status they need in order to continue living and working here as they do now.

Visas: China

Patrick Grady: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of extending the visas of Chinese students to allow them remain in the UK until it is safe to return to China following the coronavirus outbreak.

Kevin Foster: We will take a proportionate approach to individuals who are unable to comply with their visa due to circumstances beyond their control. Information and guidance will be placed into the public domain as soon as it is available.

Biometric Residence Permits

Dame Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, for what reasons people that have lost Biometric Residence Permit cards are required to submit a new Biometric Residence Permit card application for a replacement.

Dame Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment has she made of the additional cost to her Department of processing fresh applications to replace lost Biometric Resident Permit cards.

Kevin Foster: The holder of a Biometric Residence Permit (BRP) is legally required, under regulation 18(b) of the Immigration (Biometric Registration) Regulations 2008, to notify the Secretary of State if they know or suspect their document has been lost or stolen.Where the Secretary of State decides to cancel a BRP following a report of its loss or theft, the holder is required to apply to replace their card.The cost of providing a replacement BRP that has been lost or stolen (currently £56 plus a biometric enrolment fee of £19.20) is set at a level that recovers the estimated cost of both the process and the card for the Home Office and does not place any additional financial burden on the department.

Hampshire Constabulary: Recruitment

Mr Ranil Jayawardena: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many and what proportion of the additional 20,000 police offices will be recruited to Hampshire Constabulary.

Kit Malthouse: The Government is delivering on the people’s priorities by recruiting 20,000 additional police officers over the next three years. In October 2019 Home Office confirmed officer allocations for every force in England and Wales in the first year of the uplift. Hampshire Police has been allocated 156 officers in year one of the uplift, to be recruited by the end of March 2021. This is supported by an increase of up to £26.1m in 2020/21. Decisions on the allocation of officers for years two and three are yet to be taken. From April 2020 the Home Office will publish quarterly updates outlining the progress on delivering the police uplift.

Immigration: EEA Nationals

Mr Clive Betts: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when she plans to replace EEA regulations on immigration with alternative arrangements; and what those arrangements will comprise.

Kevin Foster: Following the UK’s exit from the European Union and the end of free movement, we will deliver on the people’s priorities by introducing a new points-based immigration system from 2021 to attract the brightest and best talent from around the world, with decisions based on what you have to offer, not where your passport is from.We will set out the details of this firmer and fairer new system in the near future.

Department for International Development

Private Infrastructure Development Group: Fossil Fuels

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how many fossil fuel extraction projects the Department has allocated funding to through the private infrastructure development group; when funding was allocated to each of those projects; and how much funding was allocated.

Andrew Stephenson: DFID invests in the Private Infrastructure Development Group (PIDG) to improve access to critical infrastructure services for people in the poorest regions of Africa and Asia – in sectors such as power, communications, transport and water.PIDG has no active investments in any fossil fuel extraction projects. PIDG does not invest in the exploration, extraction or refining of oil, natural gas or liquid petroleum gas.In 2004, PIDG did provide one-off funding of $500,000 (£273,000) for technical assistance to the Government of Mozambique on the feasibility of establishing a coal mine in the town of Moatize in Mozambique. PIDG’s strategy now rules out any investing in coal.

Scotland Office

*No heading*

Jerome Mayhew: What steps the Government is taking to support the operation of the UK internal market.

Douglas Ross: The UK internal market is essential to promote growth, drive productivity and deliver an economy that works for all parts of the UK and the Government is committed to supporting this. The Scottish Government’s own statistics make clear that 60% of Scottish exports go to the rest of the UK, 1.5 times higher than is exported to the EU and the rest of the world combined.

*No heading*

Brendan O'Hara: What discussions he has had with the Prime Minister on the proposals of the Scottish Government to introduce a Scottish visa.

Mr Alister Jack: The Government has made clear we are devising a new system that helps address those challenges, but have no plans to devolve immigration. The new system will recognise the needs of all the nations and regions of the UK, including Scotland.

*No heading*

Patrick Grady: What the Government’s policy is on maintaining the Sewel Convention.

Margaret Ferrier: What the Government’s policy is on maintaining the Sewel Convention.

Douglas Ross: This Government remains fully committed to the Sewel Convention and the related practices and procedures for seeking legislative consent. We will continue to uphold the spirit and the letter of the devolution settlement, as every Government has done consistently throughout the last twenty years.

Church Commissioners

Christianity: Religious Freedom

Jim Shannon: To ask the hon. Member for South West Bedfordshire, representing the Church Commissioners, what recent discussions the Church of England has had with (a) officials in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and (b) the Prime Minister’s Special Representative for Freedom of Religion and Belief on the volume of attacks on the Christian communities throughout the world.

Andrew Selous: The Mission and Public Affairs Division of the Archbishop’s Council is in regular contact with the Freedom of Religion or Belief Team at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and has engaged on this issue with relevant embassy staff when travelling overseas. They have also had a series of meetings with the Prime Minister’s Special Representative for Freedom of Religion or Belief since his appointment. Senior Church leaders have also had meetings with the Prime Minister’s Special Envoy in recent weeks.

Churches: Finance

Jim Shannon: To ask the hon. Member for South West Bedfordshire, representing the Church Commissioners, what assessment the Church Commissioners have made of the effect of the Strategic Development Fund on local (a) churches and (b) communities.

Andrew Selous: All projects supported by the Strategic Development Funding are subject to monitoring and evaluation. The majority of projects are ongoing and it is too early to assess the full impact of the overall programme, but generally projects have already reported nearly 9,000 new disciples, increased activity on discipleship, and a wide range of projects engaging with local communities. Examples of projects that the Strategic Development Fund is enabling include food banks, help for new mothers, outreach to homeless people, engagement with those in prison, and hospitality and other forms of support for those living in deprived communities.

Churches

Jim Shannon: To ask the hon. Member for South West Bedfordshire, representing the Church Commissioners, what steps the Church of England is taking to monitor the effect of renewal and reform programme church planting on planting on local (a) churches and (b) communities.

Andrew Selous: Church planting is an excellent way for local churches to develop their mission and ministry, especially into communities where the church presence may be limited. Over 2,000 fresh expressions of church have been created since the Mission-Shaped Church report in 2004. These churches have proved effective at reaching people who do not normally engage with church, and at reaching young people especially. Since 2016 the Renewal and Reform programme and Strategic Development Funding have supported dioceses to develop church planting capacity in major population areas. These churches have shown significant growth and are also reaching de-churched, non-churched and young people. We specifically monitor and evaluate all projects funded by Strategic Development Funding, including their impact numerically, spiritually and in term of community impact. The Church of England also collects statistics annually from every church, including church plants and fresh expressions of church, as well as commissioning additional research on the wider impact of church planting.

Church Commissioners: Investment

Jim Shannon: To ask the hon. Member for South West Bedfordshire, representing the Church Commissioners, what steps the Church Commissioners are taking to help ensure that companies they invest in and comply with the Paris climate agreement.

Andrew Selous: The Church Commissioners have continued to pursue action on climate change as their overwhelming ethical investment priority. The Commissioners have helped grow the number of companies involved in the Transition Pathway Initiative (TPI), which is now backed by investors representing over $18 trillion of assets under management and advice. TPI scores companies according to the quality of their management of climate change issues and indicates whether their carbon emissions are aligned with the pathways required to achieve the goals of the Paris Agreement. In addition, the Commissioners have signed up to the Net Zero Asset Owner Alliance, requiring them to transition their portfolio to net zero emissions by 2050. The Alliance emphasises a change in the real economy and focuses on continued engagement with policymakers, companies and asset managers alongside low carbon investments, to create the conditions required to meet the goals of the Paris Agreement. The Commissioners are part of Climate Action 100+ and through their own programmes encourage as many high-emitting companies as possible to meet their climate expectations. Whilst the Church can divest from companies not taking climate change seriously, they are expecting to implement their next round of climate-related restrictions by the end of 2020. In 2023 a further systematic round of restrictions is expected if companies still do not change after engagement efforts, with tougher thresholds focusing on alignment of the fossil fuel sector and electric utilities with the goals of the Paris Agreement. Following sustained engagement from the Church and other investors BP have recently announced their ambition to become a net-zero emissions company by 2050. The Church of England Pensions Board have also recently launched a Paris-aligned passive investment index with FTSE Russell and announced a commitment of £600m to the new Index.

Archbishop of Canterbury

Jim Shannon: To ask the hon. Member for South West Bedfordshire, representing the Church Commissioners, what the outcomes were of the Archbishop of Canterbury’s recent visits to the (a) Democratic Republic of the Congo and (b) South Sudan.

Andrew Selous: A) The Archbishop of Canterbury visited the Democratic Republic of the Congo in November 2019 when he spent four days travelling to see Ebola treatment centres and meet doctors, patients and survivors. The Archbishop's Office has been working with aid agencies to promote resources and best practice for clergy who are working in areas of outbreak. On 4th February 2020 the Archbishop released a statement of concern following a new wave of violence leading to the death of 70 civilians in Deni. Among those killed was the Reverend Yese Ngulongo and others within the local Christian community. The Archbishop called on local and international leaders to pursue a comprehensive strategy to bring lasting peace and reconciliation to the country.B) The Archbishop and His Holiness Pope Francis remain committed to finding a peaceful way forward in South Sudan, and the Anglican and Roman Catholic Churches have been jointly at the forefront of efforts to bring peace to the country. The Church is encouraged that some progress appears to be being made and the ceasefire is holding. However concerns remain that the South Sudanese Principals have not yet been able to find ways to resolve outstanding pre-transitional issues. While this situation continues it will be very difficult for His Holiness and the Archbishop to visit the country, which they have committed to doing together. Conversations are ongoing at an international level to encourage those in Government to use their power to find solutions that would enable all South Sudanese peoples to return home.

Anglicanism

Jim Shannon: To ask the hon. Member for South West Bedfordshire, representing the Church Commissioners, what the outcomes were of the recent Anglican Primates meeting in Jordan.

Andrew Selous: The Anglican Primates Meeting took place in Jordan in January 2020. The Primates of the Anglican Communion are Archbishops, Presiding Bishops, Moderators and chief pastors of the 40 provinces. Their Churches are autonomous yet inter-dependent in their relationships with each other. The 33 Primates who attended the meeting discussed preparations for the Lambeth Conference 2020 and also approved the formation of the new province of Alexandria, which covers Egypt, North Africa and the Horn of Africa. They also discussed the proposal for the creation of the new province of the Church of Ceylon (Sri Lanka). The full communique can be read here: https://aco.org/media/355576/primates-meeting-2020-communique.pdf

Clergy: Training

Jim Shannon: To ask the hon. Member for South West Bedfordshire, representing the Church Commissioners, what steps the Church of England is taking to inform and educate its clergy on (a) scientific advances and (b) new technologies.

Andrew Selous: The Church of England’s Mission and Public Affairs Division has partnered with the Universities of Durham and York to address gaps in understanding between science and religion. Equipping Christian Leaders in an Age of Science has been running for four years and has just been awarded £3.4m by the Templeton Religion Trust for its next phases. The team has organised 11 conferences enabling bishops and senior church leaders to engage with the latest developments in topics ranging from neuroscience to cosmology. The Church of England is also a partner in the Centre for Doctoral Training in AI Ethics at the University of Bath, along with numerous other industry partners, gaining understanding which will be shared within the Church. The Bishop of Oxford is a member of the House of Lords Select Committee on AI and is a board member of the Centre for Data Ethics and Innovation. The Church also made a submission to the recently-published consultation by the Committee for Standards in Public Life on the impact of AI on public life. All this work on new technologies will feed into the Equipping Christian Leaders in an Age of Science project and the wider engagement of the Church on public affairs. In March 2020 three new pieces of research will begin. These are designed to deepen understanding of science and to resource and expand the reach of Church engagement. This research will take place at Durham University, York University and within the Mission and Public Affairs Division of the Archbishops' Council.

Marriage

Jim Shannon: To ask the hon. Member for South West Bedfordshire, representing the Church Commissioners, what steps the Church of England is taking to strengthen and marriage and family life.

Andrew Selous: At parish level clergy and parishioners often work with couples to prepare them ahead of their wedding for life together, support them afterwards, and through voluntary activities offer groups and facilities for families and children, which help sustain community.Marriage preparation work will often include church-led marriage enrichment workshops and other courses and support for couples at every stage of their marriage. Through the Life Events programme the Church is working with clergy and other church leaders to enhance the depth of engagement with couples through wedding planning.The Church, including through the Bishops in the House of Lords, continues to highlight and address the social and economic issues that place strain on married relationships, including the Bishop of St Albans’s work on the impact of gambling and the Archbishop of Canterbury’s Commission on Housing, Church and Community. The Church of England also made a submission to the Government’s consultation on no-fault divorce and the Lords Spiritual have engaged with the legislation in Parliament.

Cabinet Office

Crime: Airguns

Karin Smyth: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many air weapons offences there were in each year since 2014-15.

Chloe Smith: The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority. I have therefore asked the Authority to respond.



UKSA Response
(PDF Document, 93.85 KB)

Climate Change Convention

Dr Alan Whitehead: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether he plans to help support every signatory to the Paris Climate Change Agreement in proposing updated intended nationally determined contributions in time for COP 26.

Dr Alan Whitehead: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether he plans to introduce a global goal for tree planting and protection at COP 26 in late 2020.

Dr Alan Whitehead: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of changing the location of COP 26 in late 2020.

Dr Alan Whitehead: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the budget is for hosting COP 26.

Jeremy Quin: I refer the Hon. Member to the answers the Prime Minister gave on 5 February (Official Report Volume 671 col 306-314).The UK will be encouraging all countries to submit increased Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) ahead of COP26. As part of this the UK will come forward with an enhanced NDC.HM Government provides support in a number of ways to the development of new NDCs, including through our International Climate Finance Programme (IFCP), for which the Prime Minister has announced a doubling of support to £11.6 billion for the period 2021/22-2025/26. The IFCP also supports UK aid projects, including the protection and restoration of forests.Discussions with delivery partners regarding costs for COP26 are ongoing, and final budgets are yet to be confirmed.Further details will be announced in due course.

Civil Service: LGBT People

Dawn Butler: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps he plans to take to improve reporting on LGBT+ inclusion in the civil service.

Jeremy Quin: The Civil Service is committed to being an LGBT+ inclusive employer. Information about the composition of the Civil Service workforce, including representation by sexual orientation, is published on gov.uk. Results of the annual Civil Service People Survey, including a breakdown by sexual orientation, are also published.The Civil Service Diversity & Inclusion Strategy (2017) committed to increasing the number of civil servants who record their sexual orientation data on HR systems. Reporting rates are steadily increasing, and have risen to 57% in 2019. In addition, the Civil Service People Survey has since 2018 included questions to allow analysis of the experiences of transgender civil servants.The Civil Service is also working with the Office for National Statistics and the Government Equalities Office to develop standardised questions to collect data on sexual orientation and gender identity, ensuring that data on LGBT inclusion is collected by all departments, and can be reported centrally, in a consistent way.

Asthma and Lung Cancer: Death

Alex Sobel: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many people died from (a) asthma and (b) lung cancer in England in each of the last 10 years.

Chloe Smith: The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority. I have therefore asked the Authority to respond.



UKSA Response 
(PDF Document, 75.41 KB)

Exports and Imports: Republic of Ireland

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the value was of (a) exports and (b) imports between the UK and Ireland in (i) 2009 and (ii) 2019.

Chloe Smith: The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority. I have therefore asked the Authority to respond.



UKSA Response 
(PDF Document, 62.6 KB)

Catalytic Converters: Theft

Wendy Chamberlain: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what estimate he has made of the rates of theft of catalytic converters from automobiles in each of the last five years.

Chloe Smith: The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority. I have therefore asked the Authority to respond.



UKSA Response 
(PDF Document, 54.15 KB)

Treasury

VAT: Fraud

Sir Graham Brady: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse in revenue lost as a result of VAT fraud on online marketplaces in the 2018-19 financial year; and what proportion of that cost was attributable to overseas sellers.

Sir Graham Brady: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether his Department has made an assessment of the effect of online VAT fraud on small businesses; and if he will make a statement.

Sir Graham Brady: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of the Association of Accounting Technicians' recommendation to make online platforms liable for the collection and remittance of VAT; and if he will make a statement.

Sir Graham Brady: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether his Department has made an assessment of the effectiveness of VAT collection regimes in countries that require online platforms to collect and remit VAT online.

Jesse Norman: The Government is determined to ensure that all businesses pay the tax that is due, and it is well aware of the potential for VAT losses that may arise when overseas businesses fail to comply with UK VAT rules, and the disadvantage for domestic businesses. The Government has therefore taken action to make online marketplaces responsible for VAT losses as a result of fraud and error on their sites. HMRC have now issued over 10,800 joint and several liability notices to online marketplaces resulting in the removal of non-compliant sellers. These measures act as a strong deterrent to overseas businesses evading VAT. The Government will continue to monitor the success of these interventions and will continue to look at alternative methods to address this issue.

Children: Day Care

Carla Lockhart: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how much funding the Government has allocated under the tax-free childcare scheme in Northern Ireland since its creation.

Rishi Sunak: Tax-Free Childcare is accessible UK-wide. It provides the same level of support to parents - 20% of childcare costs up to a cap of £2000 per child per year - regardless of the region in which they live. Therefore, the spending in Northern Ireland is not pre-allocated and will depend on the uptake of the service in Northern Ireland.

Greenhouse Gas Emissions

Charlotte Nichols: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent progress his Department has made on its review into funding the transition to a net zero greenhouse gas economy.

Mr Simon Clarke: In November 2019, HM Treasury published terms of reference for its review into how the transition to a net zero economy will be funded, and where the costs will fall. The review will ensure contributions are fair between households, businesses and the taxpayer, and will allow us to maximise economic growth opportunities from the transition. The review will publish its findings in Autumn 2020.

Industry: Scotland

David Mundell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what support he plans to provide to industries in Scotland affected by the recent introduction of US trade tariffs.

Rishi Sunak: We are discussing with Cabinet colleagues our next steps regarding the Airbus dispute that has led to tariffs being imposed on a range of UK products. We are urging the US and EU to come to a negotiated settlement as soon as possible, as the best way to resolve this dispute.

Tax Avoidance and War Widows

Dr Julian Lewis: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on the consistent application of the principle of retrospectivity in the cases of the (a) loan charge and (b) war widows' pension.

Jesse Norman: The Loan Charge is not retrospective as it is a new charge on disguised remuneration loan balances which were outstanding at 5 April 2019. However, Sir Amyas Morse’s independent Review recommended that the Loan Charge should be applied to disguised remuneration loans which were entered into on 9 December 2010 or afterwards, as the law about the tax treatment of these loans was clear from this date. The Government accepted this recommendation. It has been the policy of successive Governments that changes to public service pension and compensation schemes should not be applied retrospectively where benefits have already been awarded. The Government currently has no plans to reinstate war widows’ pensions with retrospective effect.

Barclays: Fees and Charges

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions he has had with the Financial Conduct Authority on Barclays' overdraft pricing changes planned for March 2020.

John Glen: Treasury Ministers and officials have meetings with many organisations in the public and private sectors on a variety of issues. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is operationally independent from Government and carries out its functions, including its work on the High-cost Credit Review and reforms to overdrafts, within the framework of statutory objectives and duties agreed by Parliament. In June 2019, the FCA announced new rules governing how firms can charge for overdrafts as part of their High-cost Credit Review. These include mandating that firms cannot charge more for unarranged overdrafts than arranged overdrafts, banning fixed daily and monthly charges, and a package of measures to improve the transparency of pricing. Overall the FCA expects these changes to make overdrafts simpler, fairer, and easier to manage and will protect the millions of consumers that use overdrafts, particularly more vulnerable consumers. According to their analysis, 7 out of 10 overdraft users will be better off or see no change to their fees. In instances where consumers see increased fees on their overdrafts firms are required to develop strategies to reduce repeat use harm and incorporate monitoring and identification systems into their processes. Firms must make appropriate interventions if they identify that a customer is in financial difficulty, including presenting options for reducing use. If constituents think these changes to overdrafts will put them in financial difficulty, or are worried about higher charges, they should contact their bank.

Tax Avoidance

Abena Oppong-Asare: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the number of people who will be made bankrupt as a result of accelerated payment notices in respect of the 2019 Loan Charge.

Jesse Norman: The Accelerated Payment regime is designed to change the underlying economics of tax avoidance by requiring disputed tax to be paid upfront while an avoidance scheme is investigated. HMRC can only issue Accelerated Payment Notices (APNs) in tightly defined circumstances, set out in legislation. The 2019 Loan Charge is a tax charge which applies to disguised remuneration (DR) loan balances which remained outstanding at 5 April 2019. APNs and the 2019 Loan Charge are two separate, distinct regimes. HMRC cannot issue APNs in relation to the Loan Charge. There is no estimate on how many people will be made bankrupt as a result of APNs issued in connection with avoidance schemes that seek to disguise remuneration. HMRC do not want to make anybody bankrupt, and insolvency is only ever considered as a last resort. HMRC will work with individuals to reach sustainable and manageable payment plans wherever possible.

Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport

Mobile Phones

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether he plans to take steps to reduce the risks associated with high risk vendors in mobile networks in the UK.

Matt Warman: The final conclusions of the Government’s Telecoms Supply Chain Review in relation to high risk vendors were announced on 28 January and provided the details of the additional steps it will be necessary to take to mitigate the risk from high risk vendors. The review concluded that high risk vendors should be excluded from those parts of the 5G network that are critical to security; that their presence in the rest of the UK’s networks should be limited to 35 per cent; and that they should be excluded from sensitive geographic locations.Following the conclusions of the review, the National Cyber Security Centre has published advice on the use of high risk vendors in UK telecoms networks.We will seek to legislate at the earliest opportunity to ensure we have the powers we need to drive up security standards and control the presence of high risk vendors.

Broadband

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to the Answer of 9 April 2019 to Question 240967 on Broadband, whether people throughout the UK will have access to high speed broadband by the end of 2020.

Matt Warman: On the 20th March, the Universal Service Obligation will come into effect, giving all citizens the right to request a ‘decent broadband’ service, up to a reasonable cost threshold. This initiative, combined with greater commercial availability of broadband services of all types, will provide a ‘safety net’ for broadband provision in the UK. Progress on the rollout of broadband services continues apace across the UK. The commercial rollout of Gigabit-Capable Networks is accelerating, with more than 10% of the UK now covered with full-fibre services. Superfast services are now available to more than 96% of the UK population. Mobile broadband coverage is also improving, and should benefit from the Shared Rural Network programme.